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Sen. Bernard Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) on Tuesday (Nov. 20) unveiled a prescription drug-pricing bill that blends Republican and Democratic proposals: The legislative plan would expand the Trump administration’s international reference pricing concept to span the entire U.S. drug market and includes a Democratic proposal to give the government power to invalidate brand-drug makers’ exclusivity if their drug prices are deemed excessively high.

Kaleo CEO Spencer Williamson offered to lower the $4,100 price of the opioid overdose reversal drug Evzio as long as insurers give patients greater access to it, during his appearance on CBS’ “60 Minutes” on Sunday.

DaVita officials tells investors that the dialysis company assumes it will increase its lobbying budget by $30 million to beat back continued initiatives aimed at lowering dialysis pay as the industry’s battle with unions and other stakeholders continues.

The American Medical Association is recommending processes and parameters for prior authorization, which the doctor group says are aimed at improving the experience of Medicare and Medicaid patients while making things easier for doctors.

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) is returning to chair the Finance Committee after a hiatus as Judiciary chair, and the move gives advocates for lower drug prices an ally on the committee with jurisdiction over Medicare and Medicaid that they do not have in the current Finance Chair Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), who is retiring.

The White House budget office on Tuesday (Nov. 13) began reviewing HHS’ request for feedback on ways to revamp the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act to boost efforts to coordinate care.

Lead sponsors Sens. Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) are divided on whether they would still back a bill to support generic drug development if a pro-pharma provision were added to reverse changes Congress made to Medicare Part D payments in the coverage gap.

HHS Secretary Alex Azar doubled down on the Trump administration’s controversial plan to lower Medicare Part B drug costs by relying on international reference prices in a speech to the Commonwealth Fund International Symposium on Health Care Wednesday.

HHS Secretary Alex Azar on Wednesday (Nov. 14) indicated the innovation center is working on demonstrations to address the social determinants of health, and Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation Director Adam Boehler said he is working to partner with Housing and Urban Development and others, including in the private sector, on the issue.

While stakeholders expect lawmakers to focus less on Medicare than other health policy in the new Congress, strengthening Medicare is still part of Rep. Frank Pallone's (D-NJ) agenda for the House Energy & Commerce Committee, advocates hope Democrats will look at coverage gaps in the program, and lobbyists say lawmakers could take another look at the site-neutral cuts included in CMS’ recent hospital pay rule.

HHS Secretary Alex Azar on Thursday (Nov. 8) pointed to CMS’ recently finalized changes to evaluation and management codes to show that, while the agency is willing to work with stakeholders, it will follow through on its policy proposals even if there is pushback.

CMS says about 93 percent of eligible providers in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System received a bonus for their 2017 performance and the vast majority avoided a pay cut -- though CMS Administrator Seema Verma says in a blog post that she expects performance in the program will change as the thresholds are harder to meet.

Several Senate Finance members will not return to the committee, as Sens. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) and Dean Heller (R-NV) lost their reelection bids on Tuesday night (Nov. 7), while Florida Democrat Bill Nelson on Wednesday morning called for a recount after initial tallies showed him trailing the state’s outgoing Gov. Rick Scott (R) by less than half a point.

Ten Republican members of the Ways & Means Committee will leave the House in January because they lost their midterm races, ran for higher office, or decided to retire. Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) is likely next in line to be chairman of the health subcommittee, and Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA) is up for the overall committee chairmanship.